Martin Scorsese on the moment Harvey Keitel delivered his “prime” performance
Underpinning his status as one of the greatest auteurs of all time is that Martin Scorsese is a lifelong lover of cinema as an art form. From silent pictures to classic westerns, the New Yorker’s passion for great movies in all their forms saw him cultivate his distinctive and majorly influential approach. This has provided cultural cornerstones such as Taxi Driver, Goodfellas and Casino, and seen him try his hand at a variety of genres with tremendous success.
A genuine film buff, Scorsese has provided fascinating accounts of an extensive list of titles in his time. Once, when sitting down with the prominent movie critic Roger Ebert, Scorsese listed the ten best films of the 1990s, with the likes of the Coen brothers’ Fargo and David Cronenberg’s Crash among his picks. Regarding the former, the Taxi Driver director said: “I liked the whole picture because it’s sort of a comedy of manners. It’s a movie that once it’s on, if it’s on television I’ll keep watching the whole thing. I get caught up in it.”
Later in the list at number five, the filmmaker chose Abel Ferrara’s 1992 offering, Bad Lieutenant. Starring Scorsese’s frequent collaborator and friend, Harvey Keitel as the titular policeman, it also features the likes of Victor Argo and Paul Calderón. Notably, it was co-written by Ferrara alongside actor/model Zoë Lund, who both appear in minor roles.
Known only as the Lieutenant, Keitel’s character is a corrupt NYPD officer who uses his authority for a series of corrupt exploits, including abusing hard drugs, embezzlement and the sexual harassment of teenage girls. However, the Lieutenant’s life reaches an impasse when the mob give him an ultimatum; to pay off his mounting debt or face death. However, when he learns that a $50,000 reward has been posted for a pair of criminals who raped a nun, he follows the lead in a bid for redemption.
“With Bad Lieutenant, the movie was about the most important issues in my life,” Keitel told Roger Ebert in 1993. “That is the quest to know right from wrong, and the difficulty in revealing oneself. A lot of people asked me after the screening why I’m always playing violent characters. I said I’ve never, ever played a violent character. I have played characters who were in deep conflict and despair and chaos. The lieutenant has a deep need. He’s a family man; he has children. He knows he is bad. He has a deep need for redemption.”
The complex issues central to Bad Lieutenant made the film a highlight of the 1990s for Martin Scorsese, who told Ebert that he believes it is Keitel’s best performance, as he “really reached his prime” in this particular movie. He said: “Number five, Abel Ferrara’s Bad Lieutenant, starring my old friend and collaborator Harvey Keitel. He’s always taking risks as an actor, and in the 1990s, and in this film in particular, he really reached his prime.”
Watch the trailer for Bad Lieutenant below.
